Question: 8 folders cost $11.60. Which equation would help determine the cost of 6 folders?
Answer: There are several equations that could help determine the cost, each with a slightly different approach. We can write the fact that 8 folders cost $11.60 as a proportion: $\dfrac{8}{\$11.60}$ Let $x$ represent the unknown cost of 6 folders. Since 6 folders cost $x$ , we have the following proportion: $\dfrac{6}{x}$ The cost changes along with the number of folders purchased, and so the two proportions are equivalent. $\dfrac{8}{\$11.60} = \dfrac{6}{x}$